


sagacious

by painintheassnojutsu



Category: Naruto
Genre: Chuunin Exams, Complete, Dimension Travel, Fix-It, Gen, Minor Character Death, Not posting anymore chapters, One Shot, Reincarnation, Swearing, a lot happens, don't ask for more, oc-insert, this is all you get
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-02
Updated: 2018-08-02
Packaged: 2019-06-20 19:23:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,370
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15541269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/painintheassnojutsu/pseuds/painintheassnojutsu
Summary: Her name is Eiko (永子) which means eternity, or eternal. She doesn't remember which, but she finds it rather suiting.After all, this ninja world, this new life of hers?It's not her first.And she's not the only one who knows this.





	sagacious

**Author's Note:**

> _**sagacious** , adjective, səˈɡāSHəs, having or showing keen mental discernment and good judgment_

When Eiko opens her eyes to find that she is alive, again, she is certainly not surprised. To find out she isn't on Earth? Yet again, no surprise there. She's spent more time on non-Earth worlds than she has on Earth. Magic? Been there, done that.

 

This shinobi world, however, she hasn't been to as of yet. She can recall several lives, several worlds, rarely in the same world more than three times, and she has only seen shinobi in fiction. She cannot say she is unenthused.

 

When she is five years old, and her mother announces she is to join the shinobi school?

 

Well.

 

One could never say she doesn't react like a normal child.

 

///

 

“Eiko! Time to leave, hurry up!” She hears her mother yell.

 

“Coming!” she responds, hurrying to pick up her shoes and run down the stairs.

 

Yumi sighs when she finally arrives. “I swear, child, if I wasn't here . . . ”

 

“I know, I know. I couldn't find my shoes anywhere!” Eiko grins apologetically. “We gotta go! Where's my—oh, did you cut your hair? Looks nice. Found my backpack!”

 

Yumi sighs.

 

///

 

“Uchiha Eiko,” the teacher calls, leaving Eiko to raise her arm high.

 

The man—Umino Iruka, he'd said earlier—nods and marks his paper. “Uchiha Sasuke,” he then says, and Eiko _knows_ that name.

 

She'd watched anime in her previous life, in which she was a human on Earth. She'd survived only to the age of twenty-three, at which point it was 2014.

 

Uchiha Sasuke, the only survivor of the Uchiha Massacre.

 

She hums.

 

She'll have to change that.

 

“Uzumaki Naruto,” he says next, with a tinge of distaste. Eiko frowns. That'll need changing too.

///

 

The first big change happens approximately two weeks later, when she catches Ami yelling at Sakura and Ino—after which the latter of the two proceeds to throw a flower directly into the girl's mouth.

 

Eiko believes Ino must be great with senbon. She should work with poison one day; she'd be amazing with it.

 

Eiko tells her such, and she also compliments Sakura’s hair: “It really frames your face perfectly, you look beautiful.”

 

Needless to say both girls were left stuttering in embarrassment when she walked away. Sakura brushes her hair with her fingers—a nervous tic, probably—while Ino starts to tell the Haruno about poisonous flowers.

 

It takes a few minutes for them to remember were supposed to make flower arrangements.

 

Eiko grins at them when they show off their final projects.

 

“Amazing,” she wants to tell them. “Absolutely amazing.”

 

They already know.

 

///

 

The second big change happens when Eiko is introduced to Sasuke at his sixth birthday party (it's very formal, but still a party) that year.

 

She smiles at him and says, “I saw you with that wooden sword the other day. Perhaps you should learn kenjutsu? You would indeed be very skilled at the art.”

 

He, like Sakura and Ino and yet not, becomes a blushing mess, trying to explain that _it was only a game, it doesn't say anything about his skills._

 

She flicks his ear. “What do you think adults mean to do when they teach you games like that? They are testing your aptitude, child. Do not think nobody saw how happy you were holding the sword.”

 

She leaves him, and he is soon smothering his mother with questions about swords.

 

The woman is, of course, happy to answer. Mikoto is a kenjutsu master, after all.

 

///

 

The third big change occurs when Shino is bullied about his “disgusting bugs.”

 

She gets a weeklong suspension for breaking a kid's nose, but it’d been worth it. Shino sits next to her in class now, as does the only other Aburame in the class.

 

She greets them with smiles and homemade lunches every day.

 

(She gives lunches to Naruto and Sasuke too, but those are less public and have notes inside. Naruto adores her, and Sasuke uses her as a fangirl shield.)

 

///

 

The fourth big change is perhaps more important than the first three, not that she knows the exact reactions of the general populace.

 

Eiko is in the same room as a man named Hatake Kakashi. More importantly, she is in the same room as this man's _summons_. His ninken. Only two, sure, but even one is enough.

 

These are the first summons she meets.

 

When they see her, they bow and refer to her as “Eiko-sama” despite her never telling them her name.

 

The surrounding shinobi are baffled when she bows her head politely in response. “Hello. How are you, Akino? Pakkun?”

 

The dogs smile (which isn't as creepy as it sounds) and go on to hold a short conversation with her.

 

When she admits that she must be going, they are understanding and let her go. When she leaves the room, she hears Kakashi ask, “What was that all about? She's a kid. How do you even know her?”

 

Pakkun chides him, “Don't say that, pup. She's old. She's very, very old. Older than any soul I've ever met. Older, even, than this world, I'd say. She's lived a great many lives.”

 

The room is left in silence as everyone stares at the slowly closing door, through which they see nothing but the back of a very old ten-year-old.

 

Eiko smiles.

 

///

 

Eiko is eleven years old, just over eight months from becoming twelve, when she graduates. There isn't a dividable amount of students in the classroom, so the girl is placed on an older team in need of members.

 

Her team members’ names are Uchiha Aika, Jin, and Tetsuya Yukitaka, her sensei's being the first and teammates the second and third.

 

She wonders how the Uchiha are still alive. She wonders why they are all so much less stressed, why they are finally showing their true personalities around non-Uchiha, and she wonders if perhaps it was her influence.

 

“My name is Uchiha Eiko,” she says. “I like many things, and dislike only those who do not respect others or their boundaries. There are many things I am neutral about, however. My hobbies include . . . Well, again, a very wide selection of things, although my favorites thus far are knitting, reading, and experimenting with chakra. I do not necessarily have one primary goal, as I have multiple small goals. I suppose one could say my goal is to live one life with no regrets, and although it is hard, I might just keep living until I find a world I enjoy most. Maybe by then I'll have lived a life of no regrets.” She grins. “I like this one the most, but who knows. Maybe there'll be another I prefer someday.”

 

Her introduction leaves her teammates confused, but her sensei understands and nods respectfully. “That is an admirable goal, Eiko.”

 

And that is the end of the introductions. Unlike the rest of the rookies, Eiko is not tested merely to become a proper genin by Aika. Instead, she is given aptitude tests, ranging from physical to mental involving anything one could possibly think of.

 

She apparently passes with flying colors, as the day after the testing is complete, her team is sent on a C-rank with a high probability of becoming a B-rank.

 

She understands that she is ready for it, of course, but that doesn't mean she likes that a group of children are sent on such a mission.

 

///

 

The mission goes well.

 

///

 

“Oh my goodness,” Eiko says when Jin arrives on her doorstep on his fifteenth birthday, covered in blood and dirt. He is dragging a bag behind him.

 

He smiles sheepishly. “I got kicked out of my apartment building. Can I stay with you until I get things worked out? I can't stay with Yukitaka, he, um, uh—” Jin turns red. “So! Um, can—can I stay? Maybe—just for tonight if that's okay?”

 

Eiko smiles. “You can stay as long as you like. I'll help you get a new apartment.”

 

Jin blinks. “No, no, that's okay! I can handle it myself, it—it’ll be fine. I can—”

 

“No, Jin. You're staying with me as long as you need, and I am helping. That is final. Now get in here and have a shower, then I'll see to any injuries you might have.”

 

“But—”

 

“No buts, Jin. My mother and father will be fine. They know you, they know me. They will not have an issue with it. If they do, well, I'll just have to fix that, won't I?”

 

Jin sighs, mumbling his way through her house. “You're a terrifying little eleven-year-old. Who made you like this, I swear, it certainly wasn't your parents, and I swear if—”

 

Eiko smiles and closes the door behind him.

 

Her teammate is such an idiot. She loves him.

 

///

 

Yukitaka screams when a gigantic caterpillar drops in front of him out of nowhere. Eiko snorts and tosses a kunai at the thing. It goes limp.

 

“It's only a caterpillar, Yukitaka. I do wonder how the Forest of Death animals became like this though.”

 

Yukitaka groans helplessly. “I _hate_ this!”

 

Jin rolls his eyes. “Of course _you_ would, prissy little brat that you are,” he teases. He dodges the kunai that comes his way.

 

Yukitaka huffs. “Asshole.”

 

Eiko grabs them both by the ear and tugs. “Hush, both of you. You'll draw every enemy in the _world_ over here with your volume.”

 

Jin whines. “I wasn't being loud—”

 

“Oh, weren't you? Yukitaka, don't laugh at Jin. You were being louder. Jin, don't pick fights. Yukitaka, don't scream at every little thing that scares you. Then we'd surely never make it out alive.”

 

“Cruel, Eiko-chan,” Yukitaka mumbles. Pouting, he pulls himself away from his teammates. “Let's just go find that scroll,” he sighs.

 

“Boring, but that's a good idea. Make it to the tower as soon as possible, hopefully,” Jin agrees.

 

“In an agreeable mood, finally?” Eiko asks, already continuing her tree hopping.

 

Jin refuses to give her a response, instead puffing up his cheeks and following his teammate.

 

Yukitaka laughs.

 

///

 

It is later that day when Eiko suddenly stops, turns, and runs like hell to get to another team.

 

“This team is one that recently graduated, isn't it?” Jin asks when they arrive to see the three fighting . . . Someone.

 

“Orochimaru,” Eiko breathes, ignoring the question. “We're going to kill him,” she tells him and Yukitaka in a harsh tone.

 

“ _Kill_ —” Yukitaka doesn't have time to answer when an attack from the person suddenly comes their way.

 

He screams, of course.

 

Neither of them even see Eiko move, but she's suddenly _right behind_ this Orochimaru guy and she—

 

His snake summons stop attacking. They stray from their targets, and they suddenly appear in front of Eiko. Nobody says a word. The summons are silent.

 

They bow their heads and disappear.

 

Jin chokes on his spit.

 

_What the hell just happened._

 

Orochimaru stares at her, his face unnervingly blank.

 

And he grins.

 

And suddenly he's on the ground, unconscious.

 

“ _What the fuck_ , Eiko,” Jin asks, quietly. “What the fuck.”

 

The girl smiles sweetly.

 

///

 

“And you just—you used your sharingan on him? And he went out like a light? Just like that?” one of the Hokage’s advisors asks, disbelievingly.

 

Eiko nods. “Yep.”

 

Hiruzen, the hokage, hesitates. “What did you use on him?”

 

Eiko frowns. “That's _certainly_ no business of yours, _Hokage-sama_.”

 

“Excuse me?”

 

Aika interrupts Eiko’s near response, saying, “What Eiko means to say, Hokage-sama, is that what she used is a clan secret, and therefore we have no clearance to reveal what she used.”

 

The man nods, slowly, and he looks slightly disgusted with the presence of the two Uchiha, which makes Eiko want to just—just—

 

 _Just attack him_.

 

He has _no_ right to turn such a look on members of one of the _founding clans_ , no, he's just a goddamn _kid_ , his clan is _nothing_ , Eiko should—

 

She clenches her teeth, clenches her fists, turns around, and leaves the room.

 

Absolutely no respect shown to the _child_.

 

She scoffs. “And people say that man is _old_ and _wise_. This is one of his first few lives, isn't it! Damned _bastard_. You don't just get _wise_ when you survive a hundred years in one life, fucktard!”

 

She kicks a wall, ignores the resulting damage, and continues to kick.

 

“I don't even insult people all that often! This guy's fucking ridiculous! Sexist fucking _pig_ who hates on founding clans and refuses to acknowledge his friend's _treachery_! Fuck! Those two are worse than goddamn _anyone_ in any of the other fucking worlds I've been in!”

 

She ignores the fact that she is yelling and anyone could hear her, but she _doesn't give a shit_ , to be honest.

 

“Stupid!” she shouts, and the wall nearly collapses.

 

She groans, drawing up her chakra to pull the pieces back together.

 

_Stupid fucking men._

 

 _Every_ world she's been in, it's _almost always_ men _fucking shit up_!

 

What the fuck! Is it something in their blood or something?!

 

She groans, stomping out of the tower entirely.

 

(All the animals avoid Eiko as she makes her way out of the Forest of Death. Even the tigers. _Especially_ the tigers.)

 

///

 

There is an awkward silence in the Hokage's office when Eiko enters.

 

She bares her teeth and glares at anyone who meets her eye. _Bastards_ , every single one of them.

 

Except for Anko. Anko is good. She smiles at Anko. Anko grins back, sending a wink her way.

 

“If you let Orochimaru go or stay alive,” Eiko begins, turning her gaze to rest on Hiruzen. The man raises an eyebrow. “I won't hesitate to turn every _damn_ summons or animal I find on him and Danzo. And if you piss me off enough, you as well. Choose your words carefully the next time I see you.”

 

She is gone before the ANBU guards even have the chance to draw their weapons.

 

Not one of the non-ANBU shinobi who witnessed the scene could honestly tell Hiruzen they disagreed with the girl's sentiment.

 

Not a single one.

 

///

 

Orochimaru is dead. Danzo is detained in T&I.

 

Eiko celebrates with her team as well as her graduating class, newly named the rookie nine.

 

Everyone who has met Eiko refuses to call her a rookie.

  
It's _amazing_.

**Author's Note:**

> beta'd by [falterth](https://archiveofourown.org/users/falterth) and [kaleid369](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaleid369), go check them out and shower them with love!!
> 
> leave a kudos and/or a comment if you enjoyed, thank you for reading!


End file.
